


Annoying Neighbours And Blue-eyed Strangers

by refugeofthemind



Category: Supernatural
Genre: AU, Alternate Universe, Best friend Jo, Destiel - Freeform, Humour, M/M, Misunderstandings, Neighbour AU, Neighbours, Romance, Sabriel - Freeform, Sarah - Freeform, Supernatural AU - Freeform, coffeshop au, destiel au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-06-30
Updated: 2013-06-30
Packaged: 2017-12-16 16:02:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 17,910
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/863903
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/refugeofthemind/pseuds/refugeofthemind
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A new neighbor has just moved into the apartment next door and he's annoying as hell but Dean's too busy thinking about the amazing guy he keeps meeting in his coffee shop to care.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I just got this idea suddenly while my little sister was watching Spongebob. I was just thinking that oh my god, Squidward's like Cas and Spongebob's really just an annoying version of Dean! Then I was thinking how hilarious it would be if both of them were neighbours and then it just got out of hand. Its my first time writing an AU so I hope its okay! As usual, ENJOY and REVIEW :)
> 
> A/N 2: Cross-posted on ff.net under the same name and author.

Someone new had just moved into the apartment next to Dean and he was loaded. He hadn't exactly met the guy yet, just met the brother who introduced himself as Gabriel. The guy was short and really annoying and if his brother turned out anything like him, Dean would seriously consider moving out. Well, _if_ he could afford to, that is. The other other guy, however seemed wealthy enough; Gabriel was helping him move in the furniture and _damn_ did they look expensive. And if that wasnt pretentious enough, the dude spent two weeks remodeling the apartment before moving in. From the sounds of it, it seemed to be a big-scale makeover and definitely would have cost a fortune; Dean would know, he tried to get new cabinets for his kitchen and immediately got rid of the idea as soon as he saw the cost if it.

Two weeks of hearing the constant,headache-inducing hammering across the paper thin walls was enough to make Dean annoyed at his soon-to-be neighbor but seeing the expensive-looking furniture decorating the hallway made him even more so. Every time he decided to leave his apartment, he had to carefully squeeze himself through the hallway and it was freaking uncomfortable,like navigating through an _expensive_ obstacle course. He couldn't wait to meet his neighbor and give him a good piece of his mind.

* * *

 

Dean was tired. It had been a busy day at the coffee shop and his shift didn't seem to end fast enough. Sure he left earlier than he should have, it was only noon but he was sure Jo could manage on her own just for a day. He was exhausted, running a cafe was not easy, but he sure was glad that he was partners with someone as awesome as Jo. She was a really old friend, almost like a sister to him so it was great to be in business with her.

With a slow halt, elevator came to a stop at his floor. Dean braced himself for another round of hopping around stray chairs and boxes, but was surprised to see the hallway empty of furniture. Looks like Mr. Filthy-Rich had moved in already. He gave a sign of relief, turning the key and walking into his own apartment.

Immediately he walked towards the stereo and turned it on, Led Zepplin blasting through the speakers. Singing along loudly to the chorus Dean fixed himself a sandwich and sat on the couch, savoring his lunch. Suddenly, he frowned as he heard loud banging coming from the wall behind him.

"Turn the volume down!" came a muffled, deep shout from the other side of the wall. "Some people are trying to sleep, you know!"

Dean looked incredulously at his wall clock. "Sleep? What are you, a vampire?" he yelled back. "It's only two in the afternoon!"

"I had trouble sleeping at night," came the muffled reply.

"Well sucks for you then." he retorted.

Dean could hear the slamming of a door and wasn't too surprised when he heard loud knocking on his own front door.

"Get out of the dingy old hole you call an apartment and we can have a talk!" Mr. Filthy-rich yelled.

Dean rolled his eyes and ignored him, increasing the volume to drown out the incessant banging on his door, hoping that the dude would get tired and leave.

True enough, after a few minutes, the knocks slowed down and with a final blow that could have been strong enough to break the door down, he shouted, "You're an assbutt!" With that, the stomping of feet could be heard as the door beside him slammed close again.

Dean snorted. Not only was his neighbor some kind of nocturnal monster from hell, he didn't even have the creativity to think of a insult for him.

 _Whatever_ , Dean thought, _the guy's a first grade douche..._

* * *

And a first grade douche he was for Dean woke up in the middle of the night with yelp as he heard the loud clashing of cymbals from next door, followed by the screech of violins. Deans stomped over to his living room and pounded his fist onto the shared wall between him and his neighbor. "What the hell are you doing playing orchestra music in the middle of the night while I'm trying to sleep?"

"Why, I thought you loved loud music!" came the casual, too smug reply.

"It's four am, Dracula! I've got work in the morning!" Dean growled back.

"Well, sucks for you then."

If Dean wasn't so sleepy, he would have stomped right over and strangled the man with his bare hands, or maybe with a barbed wire, whatever could cause the most pain. Instead, he angrily went back to his room, pillow pressed against his ears as he asked God what he did to deserve such an annoying insomniac as a neighbor.

* * *

 

Dean's head was pounding and his eyelids were fighting to keep open; he felt horrible. He hadn't had a proper good night's sleep for a week, ever since his god-awful neighbor moved in. Just when he thought that he couldn't get any more annoying, he was wrong. The ass-hole got a freaking dog on the second day and it had joined in on the barking along with the loud music that his neighbor never failed to play in the middle of the night. Dean had gotten accustomed to the big fluffy pink earmuffs that Sam had gotten him as a joke as they helped a little with the noise.

Dean yawned and slumped his head onto the counter. It was just his luck that his night worker, Ash had gotten himself too drunk to work and Jo had called in sick because he was now stuck doing the grave-yard shift. Who the heck would want coffee at two in the morning, Dean had argued but Jo firmly told him that they were not going to close their 24-hour cafe at any cost. Dean closed his eyes and gave a loud, tired groan that seemed muffled as his head was still on top of the counter.

"Umm, I'll take it that now's a bad time?" a deep voice hesitated.

Dean startled and jerked his head back, eyes springing open. The first thing that flooded his vision was the color blue. An intense, electric blue of eyes that were staring straight at him. Those eyes were blinking away strands of hair, which were curling over the man's forehead. With dark rumpled hair, and an intense bedhead, the man looked like he had just gotten out of bed and Dean yearned to run his fingers through the soft black hair just to see if he could pat it back in place.

"Sorry for startling you."

There it was, the gravel laden husky voice that was spoken from a pair of pink, chapped lips that Dean couldn't help but stare at in fascination.

The man looked sincere as he apologized and Dean couldn't stop the easy smile that took over his face.

"Nah it's okay, it's just been a slow night. What can I get you?"

"Just some green tea would suffice."

Dean busied himself as he got the customer a cup and placed it at the counter where he had taken his seat.

"One cup of hot green tea for our only customer!"

The man looked up at him and gave Dean a small smile that Dean returned with one of his grins. The next few minutes were quiet as the man took small sips of the steaming hot tea while Dean fidgeted behind the counter. He was bored and there was no one else in the shop for him to attend to.

"So, you're new in town?" he hesitated."I haven't seen you around before."

As soon as the words left his mouth, Dean cringed. God, that sounded like a cheesy lewd pick-up line and Dean was definitely not trying to hit on the man he met just ten minutes ago. _Okay_ , maybe he was, but he didn't want to sound too obvious.

However, the man didn't take it the wrong way, or he simply didn't show it as he nodded. "I've just moved in recently. It's been a week." He then looked at Dean, head tilted as he analyzed his face.

"You look tired," he frowned. "Maybe you should get something to drink too."

Dean self-consciously looked at himself in the reflection of the mirror that hung on the wall beside him. Crap, he did look tired. In fact, he looked downright dead. It was all his stupid neighbor's fault. God, he hated that guy. Sighing, he got himself some coffee and grabbed a stool, facing the customer across the counter.

"Yeah, I've been having a hard time sleeping, my neighbor's a first-class jerk who's life's goal is making sure that I suffer from lack of sleep every night."

The man nodded sympathetically. " I know what you mean. I have insomnia and can only fall asleep in the afternoon but my neighbor plays really loud music," he said, sounding a little annoyed. "He doesn't even have good taste."

Dean chuckled. "Of all the people living in the city, we got the two most annoying people living beside us. We must be really lucky."

The man laughed softly behind the rim of his cup as he drank in the last of his tea. "I should be going now, it's very late."

He stood up to leave and was almost walking out the door when Dean suddenly blurted out, "Wait!"

The man stopped and turned around.

"Umm," Dean hesitated, not sure of what to say. " We, umm- The shop's open in the mornings and afternoon's too!"

 _Real smooth Dean_ , he thought to himself as he realized just how stupid he sounded.

The man looked at him and with a twinkle in his eyes, he replied "Of course," before walking out the door.

And just like that, Dean's week turned out pretty awesome after all. Never mind that he was still stuck living next to Mr. Filthy-rich, the biggest asshole that Dean's ever face; meeting Mr. Blue-eyes made up for it.

* * *

 

Dean didn't want to admit it but for the next few day, he found himself hoping to meet the blue eyed man again. His eyes would keep glancing towards the door every time he heard a customer enter and his heart would sink a bit when it wasn't who he was waiting for. Even during the peak hours when he was too busy to think straight, Dean kept an eye out for that customer.

It was a Wednesday that Dean finally got what he was waiting for. Unfortunately for him, it was the busiest time in the morning, when everyone was getting their daily dose of caffeine to start their day. Dean was busy working the counter when he stopped in his tracks. Looking slightly awkward among the crowds of people, Mr Blue-eyes took a seat at the back of the cafe. Dean frowned as he noticed one of his regulars, Balthazar taking a seat beside him.

 _What was Balthazar doing with him?_ From the looks of things,the both of them seemed very close to each other, chatting away happily. Well, Balthazar was blabbering away, while the other just seemed to nod and smile in amusement. Occasionally, Balthazar would say something and Mr Blue-eyes would laugh out loud, eyes crinkling and teeth flashing a brilliant white. Dean wasn't the type to get jealous, especially over someone he hardly knew but he couldn't help glaring at their direction, frowning even deeper.

Dean could see one of their baristas, Sarah making her way over to their table, ready to refill their cups. He quickly rushed over to her to stop her.

"Uh, why don't you work the counter, I'll take over for you," Dean told Sarah, practically pushing her towards the register. Sarah had a bewildered expression on her face and from the corner of his eyes, he could see Jo shoot a suspicious look to him. He looked away from them to avoid eye contact, he _so_ didn't want to answer any of their questions yet.

Taking a deep breath, Dean made his way over to Balthazar's table, gripping the pot of coffee tightly with his fingers.

Balthazar spotted him walking nearer and he smiled at him in mock surprise.

"Why Dean, I've never seen your ass leave that chair from behind the counter before! Is there any special reason for you to grace me with your presence?" he teased.

Dean rolled his eyes. He really didn't care about Balthazar at all.

"So..." Dean asked. "Would you like a refill?"

He tried to tear his eyes away from those intense blue orbs, really, he did, but he simply ended up staring into them. Balthazar pointedly cleared his throat and both Dean the other man jumped slightly. Dean looked down in embarrassment and when he looked up, the other man's cheeks were tinted pink.

"No," Balthazar interrupted. " We're leaving soon."

Dean didn't want to admit it but his heart sank in disappointment as the other man reached out for his wallet.

"Hey, I'll take care of that!" Balthazar said, stopping his friend. "A gentleman always pays the bill on a date!"

The morning possibly went from being the best to being the worst for Dean. He tried not to let his smile waver and handed Balthazar the cheque as he gritted his teeth. It was stupid, getting hurt over somebody he only met once before. Of course that man was taken, someone that looked as amazing as him couldn't possibly be single. It was so stupid, but it also didn't stop Dean from hating Balthazar slightly.

After paying their bill, both of them stood up and Balthazar made his way to the door. Blue-eyes was about to leave too but Dean reached out to stop him.

"Wait!" he called out. _Sure, the guy was Balthazar's date, but it wouldn't hurt to at least know his name, would it?_

"Umm, if you're gonna be a regular here, it'd be great if I knew your name. Dean cringed inwardly.  _Way to be subtle, Mr Smooth._

The man smiled at him. "Castiel."

"Oh, awesome name." Dean should _really_ shut up before he embarrassed himself even more.

Castiel chucked softly an looked shyly up at him. "I suppose you want my number too."

Dean's mouth hung open in surprise and Castiel turned red. "I mean, unless you didn't want to..." he stuttered.

"No!" Dean blurted out. "I do, I want your number! But, I thought you and Balthazar..."

Castiel blushed even a deeper. "Oh, I believe Balthazar simply said that to tease you. He's just my cousin."

Dean couldn't stop the stupid grin that took over his face. "That's awesome."

Castiel's lips quirked up in an amused smile. "I suppose it is."

They both exchanged numbers and Castiel left with Balthazar, who smirked at him over his shoulders.

"So, did you get his number?" Jo asked him immediately after the two left.

Dean stupidly grinned widely, holding on to the slip of paper as though it was worth a million dollars. "Hell yeah!"

The rest of the day passed by and Dean's cheeks hurt from smiling the whole time. Not once did he stop, not even when he returned home tired only to realize that his neighbor had gotten an even louder stereo.

* * *

 


	2. Surprise Surprise

Dean would have been proud to say that the day he got Castiel's number, he marched straight home and dialed the number with absolute confidence and no hesitation whatsoever.

But then, he would've also been lying.

Instead, when he reached home that night, Dean sat on the corner of his bed, staring mesmerized at the crumpled piece of paper. _Castiel_ , it was written in neat, fancy cursive writing. It had been fascinating to watch Castiel's hand glide smoothly over the paper and Dean almost felt ashamed of his own chicken scratch of a handwriting that could barely pass off as actual English alphabets.

Finally, after mentally bullying himself into it and mustering his courage, Dean took in a deep breath and dialed in Castiel's number in his phone. Before he could chicken out of it, Dean quickly pressed the call button.

Unfortunately however, on the other side of the wall, a faint ringing could be heard.

Fantastic, he thought. It was just his luck that Mr Filthy-rich would be blabbering loudly on his phone next door while Dean struggled to think of a decent way to start his conversation.

"Hello?"

Dean sucked in his breath.

Oh God, Castiel's voice sounded even huskier and more breathless over the phone.

"Oh, hey. Its me, Dean."

"I was wondering when you'd call.'

Dean could actually hear his smirk over the phone and wondered when Castiel got to be so confident. It was a strange contrast to how shy and quiet he was back in the coffee shop.

"Oh, so you're thinking about me, huh?" Dean teased back.

Soon, the fell into a light and easy conversation and Dean began to forget why he was so nervous in the first place. He and Castiel just seemed to... click together.

* * *

 

It really shouldn't have made Dean that happy, but for the next few days, Castiel would come in twice a day. In the mornings, he would drop by with Balthazar for just a few minutes. But because it was so busy then, Dean couldn't do much about it. He would be rushing around, attending to everyone and by the time he was free, it would be time for Castiel to leave. However, when it was slower in the evening, Castiel would come in right after he got off work. He would still be decked in his usual black suit and a tie that was as blue as his eyes. And if course, his tan trench coat which he refused to take off, even inside. Dean would constantly tease him about it but in his head, Castiel looked adorable in the too-large coat.

In the evenings, there were usually very few people in the shop so Dean always could spend more time with Castiel. They would talk about everything and anything. Castiel was a little dense when it came to music; he preferred classical orchestra music while Dean wrinkled his nose at that. He also liked reading classic literature while on the other hand, Dean only read car magazines. They were just so different and yet, Dean could never run out of things to talk about with him. In the beginning, they had started off with their mutual dislike for their neighbors and from there, the conversation would just flow smoothly. Sometimes they would have an intense discussion while on other days, they would simply just sit in a comfortable silence, Dean doing the accounts of the shop and Castiel working on his laptop. Nevertheless, they would always start their conversation with something new about why they hated their neighbor so much.

"He probably watches the television with the highest volume possible."

"His stupid-ass dog barks non-stop every night."

"He never answers whenever I knock on the door."

"The dude"s always banging on the walls!"

And before Dean knew it, it would be time for Castiel to leave and his heart would sink just a bit as he saw him walk through the door.

Suspiciously, Dean would never be asked to do anything during his chat with Castiel and when he left, Jo would just waggle her eyebrows at him and give him a knowing smile, which Dean hated. It's not like there was anything going on between him and Castiel, he was just trying to be friendly with the new guy in town. Never mind the fact that he wouldn't be able to concentrate and spend the afternoons waiting restlessly for that certain new guy, or that he would get antsy if Castiel was even just a few minutes later than usual.

There was nothing between them, nope, nothing at all.

"Yeah, sure," Jo rolled her eyes at Dean.

"What, you think...that he... that, I have a stupid teenage crush on Cas?" Dean sputtered.

"Cas?" she raised her eyebrow.

Dean could have kicked himself. It's what he had been calling Castiel in his head the whole time and had gotten used to it. 'Cas' just sort of suited the guy, it was short and sweet, just like him. Not that he kept thinking about Cas, no, Castiel, he quickly corrected.

"Castiel's a really long name!" Dean shouted at Jo defensively. However, she just smiled at him. Wait, not at him, but at something behind him.

Or someone.

"Umm, sorry? I didn't think my name would be of inconvenience to anyone."

Dean spun around and blushed furiously as his gaze landed on Castiel.

"Dean was just explaining to me why he preferred to call you Cas." Jo said, smiling impishly at the two of them.

Dean's face grew redder and he shot a murderous glare towards her.

"It's just that... I mean I was just thinking that...you know, it's easier to-"

"I wouldn't mind it if you called me Cas."

Dean eyes grew wide in surprise and he looked at Castiel who was nervously avoiding his eyes and intently staring down at his shoes.

"I'd love to," Dean said softly.

 _Really, I'd love to?_ Man did he sound like a sap, Dean thought to himself.

But that didn't matter because Castiel slowly looked up and smiled at him shyly, eyes twinkling as they stared back at him.

Jo, who was watching them the whole time, grinned widely.

"You guys are just so adorable!" She gushed and Dean really wanted to just kill her there and then.

Instead, he busied himself and got Castiel his cup of green tea and the two of them fell back into their usual conversation. It was an hour before Dean's shift ended when a loud clap of thunder was heard and it suddenly started pouring outside.

"Oh no," Castiel murmured to himself as he looked outside worriedly.

"What's the matter?"

"I don't suppose you could lend me an umbrella?" Castiel asked.

"Whoa, you're not walking out in that storm are you? Even with an umbrella, you'd be drenched!" Dean exclaimed, pointing towards the heavy rain outside.

Castiel sighed. "I don't have much of a choice; my car is still under repair ."

"Dean can drop you off!" Jo chirped enthusiastically from the other corner of the shop. "I'll take over him, there aren't many people in here anyway. I'll manage fine."

"No, I don't want to trouble you..."

"Nah, it's alright." Dean waved his hands dismissively.

Castiel smile at him gratefully. "Thank you."

And no, Dean did not smile sappily back at him, no matter what Jo told Sarah after that.

Dean's car was parked in the parking lot a mile away and Castiel and Dean had to run in the rain. By the time they were in the Impala, both of them were panting and drenched.

"So much for not getting wet," Castiel muttered.

Dean nodded, catching his breath. "Well, at least I have an excuse to spend more time with you."

It was meant as a joke, to tease Castiel but even as the words left Dean's mouth, he knew that they sounded too genuine, too honest. He and Castiel looked down at their laps, blushing in silence.

"Well, uh," Dean cleared his throat nervously. "Too bad you couldn't properly appreciate baby's beauty, seeing as it's pouring outside," he said, stroking the dashboard lovingly.

"Dean," Castiel said in a dead-panned voice. "I don't think it's very healthy to form such a strong attachment with an inanimate object."

Dean gave a bark of laughter. "Oh shut up, smartass!" he retorted as he pulled out of the parking lot.The rest of the ride was spent in a comfortable silence except for when Castiel gave him directions to his place. It seemed that Castiel lived near Dean because with each direction he gave, Dean was driving closer to his own apartment. It suited him fine because that would mean that he wouldn't have that long a drive back home.

"You can pull over here," Castiel finally said.

"Seriously, you live here?" Dean looked out through the window. It was exactly the same block of flats he lived in. It was such a weird coincidence.

Castiel sighed. "Unfortunately, yes and the other people living here are just complete idiots. Why do you ask?"

There was no way that Dean was going to tell him that he lived there too, not when Castiel had just, although not specifically, called him an idiot. Besides, he had a bad feeling about this.

"No, no reason." he shrugged, nonchalantly.

Castiel didn't immediately get out of the car. Instead, he played with his keys. "Do you want to come up? I could get you some towels and maybe a dry shirt, seeing as you're as wet as I am?"

Before he could think it through, Dean found himself nodding enthusiastically. "Thanks."

However, the bad feeling grew as he and Castiel entered the elevator. His heart began pounding loudly as Castiel pressed the buttons, the number 13 glowing at him brightly. It was just another coincidence that they seemed to live on the same floor too, right?As the elevator doors opened and he followed behind Castiel, he began to get even more nervous although he wasn't sure exactly why. He held his breath as both of them walked through the hallway. With each door they passed, Dean's suspicion grew.

Finally, Castiel stopped in front of apartment 1305.

The apartment next to his.

Suddenly, memories from the past week came flooding back, making so much sense now. _Like how Castiel loved orchestra music, how he had once called him an ass-butt while teasing him. Like how he had moved in only two weeks ago and had a dog which he looked after for his brother._

_Like how Castiel kept complaining about his annoying neighbor playing loud music in the afternoons._

_Like how Mr. Blue-eyes was really Mr Filthy-rich._

_Which made Castiel his annoying neighbor._

With his thoughts swarming around his head, Dean was speechless.

"Oh," was what he managed to mutter out as sudden realization dawned upon him.


	3. The Plan

Castiel's hands were trembling, but not because of the cold. He didn't know what came over him but he was inviting Dean into his apartment before he was even conscious of his lips moving on their own. Even more surprisingly, Dean had agreed.

The elevator was big enough to hold at least six grown adults. Yet, both men found themselves standing only inches away from each other. They were so close that Castiel could feel Dean's short breaths tickling the top of his hair. And if Castiel had stepped back a little so that shoulders brushed for just a nanosecond, well, Dean didn't have to know. Despite the cold and his wet clothes, Castiel's palm were sweating and he was certain that he could feel heat radiating off of Dean where their bodies were almost touching.

Fortunately, the elevator came up to the thirteenth floor within a few minutes; Castiel rushed out and Dean followed suit. As they were walking through the corridors, Castiel noticed something; Dean was behaving strangely. He was looking around wide-eyed and was twitching around nervously. What he was looking for, Castiel wasn't sure and he was about to ask him when they reached his apartment. He quickly ran in to turn up the heater.

Castiel shucked off his sopping wet coat and grabbed a few towels from his cupboard.

"Here, I'll get you a dry shirt." he handed the towels to Dean.

Dean turned around with a dazed look on his face.

"Oh," he said, looking around the room, his lips struggling with words to say.

Castiel's eyebrows furrowed in concern and confusion.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, tilting his head.

Dean ran his fingers through his hair and stuttered, " Umm, yeah. Listen, I just remembered, that I, uh, have to be somewhere so..."

Before Castiel could reply, Dean was rushing out of the apartment which such speed that it would have seemed that there was a fire in the room. Castiel was left holding onto the towels and shivering in his wet clothes.

Castiel dreaded going into the cafe, and he wouldn't have agreed to do so so if not for Balthazar. He had initially refused to go back there after the previous night's incident. But Balthazar had kept asking questions and Castiel wasn't ready to answer them.

Fortunately for him, the cafe seemed extra busy that day so the chances of him and Dean bumping into each other were slim. Sure, Dean owned the cafe and Castiel was a customer, but he was really good at avoiding people when he wanted to. And Dean was the last person he wanted to see now. He wasn't exactly angry at Dean, he was more furious at himself for getting his hopes up too high.

What did he really think, that he would invite Dean over, the two of them would have a lovely chat and Castiel would finally confess those feelings he was harboring for Dean? Firstly, he didn't even know if Dean was gay. In fact, he was absolutely certain that Dean was as straight as a rod. Despite the jabs and teasing that Jo threw at the both of them, one thing that Castiel knew for sure was that Dean Winchester was interested in women; He never passed up a chance to flirt with the ladies who came into the cafe.

It was really all Castiel's fault. He shouldn't have talked himself into thinking that there was something going on between him and Dean. All that there was was friendship and even that he had managed to screw up. Dean was probably weirded out by how he was behaving that night. Castiel sighed. This was exactly why he had been staying out of the dating game for a while now. His brother, Gabriel had said that it was probably because nobody wanted to go out with a boring, stoic dweeb like him in the first place but the reason Castiel didn't like going on dates was that he didn't putting his heart out there for people to trample on. After his last relationship, he wasn't ready for another heartache. He thought that Dean was different. Clearly, he was delusional.

Ducking his head down so that neither Dean, Jo nor Sarah would see him, Castiel quickly made his way over to his usual spot. He almost gasped in shock to find Dean already there, looking slightly annoyed at Balthazar who, knowing him, would probably be teasing Dean to no end about one thing or another.

Dean's eyes brightened almost immediately upon seeing Castiel.

"I was worried you weren't coming," Dean rushed towards him as Castiel.

Castiel didn't know what to do with the change in Dean's behavior. He gave Dean a puzzled look.

"Look," Dean said softly, guilt lacing his words. "I'm really sorry about that night, I shouldn't have rushed out like that."

It should have been illegal for anyone to look that good while apologizing and Castiel knew that even if Dean was to apologize for murder, he would easily forgive him.

He waved his hand in dismissal as he said, "It's alright."

Dean grinned back at him. This time Castiel was sure that something had passed between them as they stared into each other's eyes longer than necessary.

"Sorry to interrupt, but I'd really like my coffee anytime soon, Dean," Balthazar interrupted.

Both of them almost jumped out of their skin and Dean ducked his head and gave Castiel a sheepish grin, he couldn't help but smile shyly back.

"Sorry, I'll be back with your coffee and Castiel's green tea." Dean apologized before rushing off.

Almost in a happy daze, Castiel absent-mindedly took a seat. It was funny how easily his morning had changed. Just a few words with Dean was enough to brighten up his day. It was something about his easy-going and laid-back nature always seemed to calm hid frazzled nerves. Castiel sighed happily.

"You know, you guys should just make out already." Balthazar commented exasperatedly across the table.

"Shut up."

For the next few days, everything seemed back to normal, or, in Dean's opinion, even better than normal. Not only did Castiel come into the cafe more often, they even sometimes met up for lunch at his favorite local diner. After his little freak-out at Castiel's apartment, Dean had rushed home, confused and horrified. But after he calmed down, he realized what an idiot he was. It didn't matter that Castiel was actually his neighbor, all that mattered was that he really liked spending time with him. The next day, Dean had gone to back to the cafe extra early so he could get the chance to apologize.

The moment he entered the cafe, he was bombarded with questions flying from both Jo and Sarah.

"I thought you had a day off today," Dean muttered towards Jo who simply shrugged and replied, "Exchanged shifts with Ash, couldn't miss the morning after your first date."

"Yeah, well first of all, it was not a date, and secondly, nothing happened at all." Dean groaned.

Sarah smirked, "Why, you got nervous and bolted?"

"Umm..."

"Oh my god!" Jo shrieked.

She grabbed a spoon and hit him across the head. "Why the hell would you run away?!"

Dean flinched and yelled defensively, "I got... overwhelmed okay!"

"You're. An. Idiot," Jo punctuated each word with a smack with her spoon.

"Ow!" Dean cried, cowering behind the counter. "That's a utensil, not a weapon!"

Sarah grabbed the spoon from Jo and turned sharply towards him. "I can't believe you'd do that to poor Castiel! Dean Winchester, you better apologize to him and figure out if you really do have feelings for that guy."

"Yeah, yeah." he muttered, ignoring the identical exasperated looks on both their faces. "Don't you have work customers to serve?"

With that, the discussion was over. Dean didn't want to admit it but he already had figured out his feelings for Cas. He never really had a long lasting relationship before but he sure had quit a lot of friends an well, what he and Cas had going between them was not just simply friendship. He liked Cas, liked spending time with him, talking about anything and everything but it didn't just stop there. He liked the way Cas would stare intensely at him with those bright blue eyes, as though what Dean was saying was of the utmost importance. The passion with Cas would speak, even if it was simply about the weather, or the rising taxes, no matter what, Dean would always feel important around him. And when Cas was confused, the bird-like way in which he'd tilt his head and squint his eyes, it was just adorable. So really, what he and Cas shared was much more than friendship and maybe Jo had knocked some sense into his head with that spoon because he suddenly knew what he needed to do.

But first, he had to apologize to Cas.

When the worst was over, and Cas had, surprisingly, forgiven him easily, Dean had decided to set forth his plan in motion. Baby steps were important so Dean started off with simpler things.

Firstly, Dean had stopped blasting away his music in the afternoon, because he remembered what Cas had said about being unable to sleep at night. He didn't want Cas to know that Dean was the one who lived beside him because he might decide never to speak to him again. Instead, Dean was going to make Cas like him as a neighbor, without actually giving away his identity. Then maybe when he finally knew the truth, Cas wouldn't hate him so much. So Dean tried his hardest to refrain from turning up his stereo in the afternoons. Unfortunately for him, Cas didn't return the favor. In fact, this seemed to encourage him as he began to play his music even louder. But hey, Dean was trying to be the bigger man here, so he kept quiet and didn't respond to the shouting matches that Cas always tried to initiate.

The next phase of his plan was born when he and Cas were having lunch together for the first time. Dean's brother had always complained about Dean's massive sweet tooth and how he was going to get diabetes at a really young age but Dean could only imagine the horror in Sam's expression if he met Cas. Not only was Cas tucking in his slice of apple pie even faster than Dean (which was already a pretty impossible feat) he also ordered a second and third helping. Dean wasn't sure if loving him anymore was possible.

At Dean's incredulous stare, Cas gave him a toothy grin and shrugged his shoulders, "These make me very happy."

And that was when it came to him.

The following weekend, Dean had shut himself in his kitchen, pouring over cookbooks and recipes. His first attempt had left the fire alarm ringing shrilly and Cas once again, banging on the walls. But by his fourth attempt, he was getting better and what came out of the oven was actually edible. Finally, on his sixth attempt, he had nailed it. With a satisfied smile, Dean packed his home baked apple pie in a box and wrapped it, signing off as 'your neighbor'.

Dean waited till morning, right before Cas left for work and placed the pie at his door. The rest of the day passed by with Dean being anxious and snapping at most of his customers until Jo had to send him off early. Walking towards his apartment, Dean's heart leapt to his throat as he saw the box now sitting at his door. A note was also attached to it.

'You're still an assbutt, and I hate apple pie.'

But Dean was grinning stupidly in the corridor outside his apartment because, well, the box was now empty, cleaned off of even a crumb of the pie that he had baked, and Cas had obviously eaten.

Maybe his plan was working after all.


	4. When Dean Grows A Pair (Not Really)

"Somebody better be dying," Dean growled as his cell phone rang shrilly in the dead of night.

"Good morning to you too, Jerk. Did you forget something?" His brother's pissed-off voice sounded through the phone.

"Morning...? Oh shit." Dean took one look at his bedside clock and sprang out of his bed.

"Look, Sam. I'm really sorry."

"Dean, I told you, if you're too busy, I could have made my way here on my own."

"Shit, look. I'll be there in ten. Just wait for me." Dean scrambled for his pants while trying to slip his arms through the sleeves of his flannel shirt.

"It's fine, took a taxi from the airport. I'll be reaching soon."

Dean tripped over the legs of his jeans and landed with a thump, arms entangled in his shirt. He swore loudly. "Dammit Sammy! You could've mentioned that sooner!"

"Oh Dean. It's alright, you don't have to apologize so many times for forgettingto pick me up from the airport." Sam was now really annoyed.

"Stop bitching. What am I, your boyfriend?"

"No, but you are my brother, and a god-awful one at that. What kind of a brother sleeps in when he's supposed to be picking up his younger brother from the airport? A younger brother who had flown all the way from California to celebrate Christmas with you. Seriously Dean, how could you not a remember something like that? It's not like you... Dean? Are listening?"

Dean was silent throughout Sam's rant which made him pause midway through what was another one of his attempts to make his brother apologize to him.

"Wait a minute. Dean, are you sleeping?" he yelled incredulously through his phone.

A loud snore from the other end of the line was a good enough answer for him. Sam groaned in frustration. That was it, he was so kicking his brother's ass when he got there.

••••••

Dean awoke the second time that morning to the loud and incessant knocking on his door. With a groan, he stood up. His limbs were still wrapped up in his clothes and his shoulders were sore from when he hit them as he fell down. He loved his brother really, but at times like this, he wished Sam could have picked a different day to come over.

Dean had spent the whole night last night at the cafe. While this was a normal occurrence, what with hiring Ash the drunkard, this time, Dean didn't have the company of Cas to occupy him trough the lonely hours. Cas, it seemed, was also expecting his brother over for the holidays and was receiving him from the airport.

Speaking of him, Dean's plan wasn't going so well. It had been almost two weeks but there was no progress. The pastries had been a success and Dean had ceased blasting off his stereo but after those initial first steps, he was lost. How the hell was he supposed to get Castiel to like the neighbor he had been hating on from the moment he moved into the neighborhood?

And while he was racking his brain for more ideas, it was getting harder to hide his identity from Cas. Hell, the guy was sharp and nothing escaped him. Most of the time, Dean felt like he was Hannah freaking Montana and that anytime soon, his wig would come off and all would be revealed. Sometimes it would be the little things like playing the exact same song he had been listening to back at the apartment that would make Cas's eye squint in confusion and suspicion. So Dean had to try extra hard to keep his secret safe, but it wasn't easy.

Just the other day, Dean was walking home because his car was in Bobby's garage getting repaired. The snow was falling hard and the cold bit him harshly. And then, out of nowhere, like Dean's knight in shining armor, Cas had appeared driving by in his Volvo. He screeched to a stop and demanded that Dean get in the car so that he could drive him home because there was no way anyone should be walking in this weather. Dean didn't really think the whole idea through and gratefully accepted the offer. It was only when Cas asked for his address did he realize that he was screwed.

"My address?" Dean had sputtered out.

"Yes your address, Dean. You know, where you live?" Castiel had rolled his eyes.

Dean's mind reeled and without thinking, he blurted out a random address from the top of his head.

Castiel frowned. "That is on the other side of the town. Why were you walking in the opposite direction?"

"Wha-at? Really?" Dean laughed nervously. "Wow, the snow's falling so hard I can hardly see anything."

Cas had given him an odd look but said nothing and the rest of the ride had passed by fine. Well, up until the point when Cas had dropped him off and Dean realized that he had to walk back home again, which was now twice as far as before.

Yup, leading a double life was awesome.

"Dean! Open the damn door!" Sam pounded the door so loudly that Dean was sure it would break down any moment.

He ran over and flung open his front door.

"Shush!" Dean hissed at his brother. Cas had gotten home late last night, later than him and he didn't want to wake him up too early.

Sam, however, didn't hear him as he burst through the doorway, dragging his bags behind him. "What the hell man? Is this the welcome I get after almost a year of not seeing each other? I mean, it was bad enough that-"

Sam glanced at Dean and did a double take. "You look like crap, Dean."

"Good to have you back too, Sammy," said Dean sarcastically.

"Seriously, dude. Are you okay?"

Dean waved his brother's concern off. "It's just the cafe. Had to fill in for the new guy."

"Ash? I told you Dean, you should fire him already. I mean all he does is turn up drunk and drinks on the job. He's ruining the business that you and Jo worked hard for..."

Dean grinned to himself. He had forgotten how much of a blabber mouth his brother and he missed it. It was one thing talking to each other in the phone but it had been too long since the last time they were together. Both of them were just so busy, what with Sam in college and Dean caring for the cafe. It was great to finally sit back and relax with his younger brother.

They spent most of the morning catching up with each other. Dean made breakfast which Sam gratefully appreciated, stating that college food was almost inedible. They also talked about the future, and when Sam told his brother that he wanted to be lawyer, Dean swelled up in pride.

They chatted till it was late afternoon and Dean's watched beeped. He frowned in surprise; it was funny how time always seemed to fly past without him even realizing it.

He ran his hand through his hair. "Ah, sorry Sa . I need to go back to the Cafe."

"What?" Sam protested. "Why?"

"It's just been busy these couple of days," Dean replied. That wasn't exactly the truth. Sure, more people were coming in now more than ever; hot coffee always seemed like the perfect drink in the cold, but it wasn't as though Jo and Sarah couldn't handle them. The real reason Dean was so anxious to get to the cafe was because Cas had told him he would be there.

Sam suddenly smirked and with a knowing grin he said, "Does this have anything to do with Castiel?"

Dean almost choked on his own saliva. "Who told you about Cas?"

"Ooh, Cas?" Sam teased. "Jo told me all about your cute little crush on him."

"She is so dead."

"I'm coming with you." Sam announced.

Dean's eyes widened in horror as he shook his head vehemently. "No way in hell. You'll just scare Cas away. I am not letting you do that. I'd rather skin myself then let you tag along."

••••

"Which one is he?" Sam asked, scrutinizing every one of the male customers.

"The hot hunk with blue eyes in the brown trench coat." Jo answered.

"I can't believe I let you tag along," Dean muttered.

"Wait, let me get this straight. How long have you had a crush on him?" Sam mused.

"It's not a crush!"

"More than a month."

"Jo!"

"And you haven't asked him out yet. Wow, he must be something special!"

"Sam!"

"Which is why," said Jo, "he is going to do so today, right now."

Sam nodded in agreement with a smug smile on his face.

Dean on the other hand, crossed his arms. "Haha, no."

"C'mon Dean." Sam whined. "You can do this. If you don't, we'll do it for you."

Dean knew that his brother would follow through with the threat, and Jo would probably help too and then Dean would die of embarrassment. Raising his arms up surrender, he sighed. "Fine, I'll do it."

Dean got out from behind the counter, taking in a deep breath. He wiped his clammy hands on his apron and made his way towards Cas's table. He was at his usual corner, reading a paperback. Alright, he could do this. It wasn't like this was his first time asking anyone on a date. He was quite a ladies' man back in high school and asked a couple of people out in college. This wasn't any different. Except this was Casand if he ruined this opportunity, Dean wouldn't be able to live with himself. He took another deep breath, steadying his rapidly beating heart.

He got closer to Cas' table. By then, Cas had seen him and had looked up from his book. He gave Dean a toothy smile which made him freeze up.

"Hello Dean."

Dean should have probably said something back, but his tongue was stuck to the roof of his mouth. His brain had turned blank and it seemed that he had lost the ability to speak.

" 'Sup," he finally managed to choke out. He then turned the opposite direction and scurried off back to the counter, where Sam and Jo were trying their best not to look as though they were eavesdropping.

"Wow, just wow." Sam chuckled as Dean stomped his way towards them.

"Shut it," Dean growled.

"You need help," Jo shook her head sympathetically.

And boy, was she right.

Sarah spent most of the afternoons serving the customers while the three of them huddled at the back, thinking of a way for Dean to get a date.

"How about a note?" Sam suggested.

"What am I, eight?"

"It's the only idea we've got so far," sighed Jo.

So Sam dictated while Jo wrote on a napkin. Dean supervised; making sure the note wasn't sappy in the slightest.

"Here," said Jo, placing the napkin on a tray and handing it to Dean. "Not even you can screw this up."

This time, she was so wrong.

Dean was making his way back to Cas's corner when Sally, one of their elderly regulars came went up to him.

"Sorry, I need a napkin," she said as she grabbed a bunch of them from his tray.

She began wiping at the stain on her blouse and Dean prayed that she wouldn't take a second look at the tissue in her hands. God didn't seem to be on Dean' side at all because right before returning to her table, she glanced at the crumpled up napkin, noticing the words written in them. Her eyes grew wide in horror and before Dean could explain himself, Sally shot him a disgusted look and fled out of the cafe.

"You just lost us one of our regulars!" Jo hissed at Dean angrily.

"That's it, I'm all out of ideas," groaned Sam. "You are a lost cause."

Suddenly, Jo gasped out loud and began tapping Dean on his shoulder rather violently. "Oh my god. He's coming over!"

"Who?" asked Dean but Jo and Sam, it seemed, had disappeared out of sight.

"Are you okay?"

Dean spun around and came face to face with Castiel, who really didn't know anything about personal space, not that Dean was complaining. Up this close, he could stare deep into those bright blue eyes which made him feel as though he was drowning in the ocean...

"Wh-what? Oh, yeah. Sure, I'm alright."

This time, it was Cas's turn to blush and Dean watched in fascination as the deep flush crept its way over his pale skin. Cas looked down an bit his lips in a way that told Dean that he was nervous.

"I was wondering if... Maybe-you'd-wanted-to-hang-out-for-dinner-this-Saturday-night?" Cas blurted out.

Dean blinked. "As in a date?"

Cas's ears turned even a darker shade of red as he nodded without looking him in the eye. Over his shoulder, Dean could see Jo and Sam giving him two thumbs up while sporting identical grins.

Dean smiled at Cas in relief. "That'd be awesome."


	5. What A Disaster

As far as first dates went, his with Cas was like Sam's first attempt at driving; downright disastrous and someone did end up in the hospital.

Dean had been fretting about it for the rest of the week and when Friday night loomed over, he was sure he had grown boobs as a result of freaking out like a girl and Sam had paid his brother back for all those years that he had been teased for. Dean didn't even have any idea on what to wear; all that Cas said was that they were going to have a simple dinner. Simple dinner? So did that mean that jeans were okay or did he have to wear the sports jacket that Sam insisted on? And where the hell was his favorite shirt? Dean was almost tempted to peek through Cas's peephole just to see what he was wearing.

Then there was the problem of Cas picking him up. Dean's impala was still in Bobby's garage so that was the only logical thing to do (and also because Dean was too dazed to actually comprehend the problem that would arise at that time). So that was how Dean found himself trying his hardest to remember the random address that he prattled off to Cas.

Turns out that the address wasn't so random after all; it was one of his ex-girlfriend's. Of course he didn't realize that until he was caught by Lisa while he crept around her front yard.

"Wait you don't understand..." Dean protested, backing away and raising his arms up in surrender.

"How dare you come back!" screamed Lisa and before Dean could defend himself, she lashed out and kicked him right in his nuts.

"Holy batman cheerleader..." Dean cursed, limping away from the hell-house and towards the streets.

Just then, a Volvo came cruising down the road. It stopped in front of him and out stepped a very confused looking Cas. Dean sucked in a gasp as his eyes fell on the other man. Cas was wearing jeans and a simple button down. It was probably the first time Dean saw him without the trenchcoat and the absence of it showed the wiry frame and hard muscles that was hiding under that oversized coat all this while.

"Dean?" Cas tilted his head and squinted his eyes in confusion.

Dean gave out a nervous bark of laughter. "It's a long story," he said and thank god that Cas didn't ask any further because how was he supposed to come up with a story right there?

-

"Damn it Sarah! I think we need to get a closer table; I can't hear them from here," Jo hissed from behind the menu.

"I still can't believe we left Ash in charge of the cafe for this," Sarah groaned. "And I can't believe you talked me into going along with this stupid plan of yours."

"Quit whining. The only reason I asked you was because Sam canceled last minute. Besides, we both know how much Dean needs help being the emotional retard that he is."

Sarah responded with something that Jo ignored in favor of attempting to lip-read. She really should have planned this better, but it was a sort of last minute decision. When Sam had called in the middle of the week complaining to her about what a nervous wreck Dean was, both of them decided that Dean was not going on that date alone. They were going to tag along and help him, to make sure that it didn't end in a disaster. But of course you know, without actually letting Dean know about it or asking him if he was fine with it.

Whatever. Details.

So with a little wheedling, Jo managed to find out the place that Castiel had planned to take his date for dinner and she and Sarah ( Sam couldn't make it because he had some stupid holiday assignment to complete or something) handed their shifts over to Ash.

So far, the two men weren't doing much, just sitting in an awkward silence that was painful to even watch.

"Oh god, Dean! Do something!" Jo muttered.

"Jo, confronting Castiel and demanding that he ask Dean out on a date was meddlesome. But now we've crossed over to being creepy. I really don't think we should be spying on them!" Sarah protested.

Jo dismissed her with the wave of her hand. "Hush, I think Dean's about to do something."

Despite herself, Sarah couldn't help but tilt her body so that she could have a better view of the couple.

The two ladies waited in anticipation but to their disappointment, all that Dean did was gesture to their waitress to order.

Jo couldn't believe that this was the ever so popular Dean Winchester who could always score a date without even trying and sweep both the ladies and men off their feet. Where was that man now?

"Let's face it, they're not gonna do anything romantically interesting at all and Dean's gonna end up all alone just because he didn't have the balls to make a single move." she groaned.

"Hang on," Sarah perked up excitedly, eyes glittering mischievously. "Didn't you mention before that Dean has a jealous streak?"

It didn't require much effort for the both of them to get a hold of Dean and Castiel's waitress, and after shoving a while earbud noted into her hands, she nodded along to their specific instructions. After that, Jo and Sarah settled back in their seats, getting a good view of the show that was going to start before them.

"When they get married, Dean so owes it to us." Sarah smirked.

Jo couldn't agree more.

"I'm really sorry, but some of the orders got mixed up in the kitchen so I'll have to retake them."

Dean smiled back at the waitress. "No problem. One cheese burger for me."

Except the waitress wasn't paying much attention to him. Chasity, as the name tag read, was too busy checking out Cas.

"And how 'bout you handsome?" she piped, voice coated in so much honey that it made Dean wince.

Cas didn't seem to notice the extra attention that he was receiving. Or if he did, he wasn't acknowledging that. Instead, he repeated his order in his usual deadpan voice without sparing a glance towards her.

"Alright, your food will arrive in a short time. Once again, sorry for the trouble, for both you and your friend." Chasity said, gushing.

Dean was getting annoyed. The waitress was completely ignoring him and he was sure that she hadn't even bothered to take down his order. Not to mention how hard she was hitting on Cas, what with all the smiling, flirting and bending down so that a good portion of her chest was on display. And wait... did she just say friend? Scratch annoyed, he was now downright pissed. To try to steal his date away, that girl was definitely asking for it. As Chasity took one final glance at Cas before prancing off, without really thinking about what he was doing, Dean placed his hand on top of Cas's possessively, just to show the witch the kind of friend he really was. Chasity narrowed her eyes at him and scowled. Dean smirked triumphantly back at him.

"Dean, you have no reason to worry."

Dean turned to face Cas again, ears turning red. "W-what?"

"You don't need to feel threatened by her. I'm on a date with you, not the waitress."

Dean ducked his head down as the blush crept to his neck. Suddenly, he was all too conscious of his hand that was right on top of Cas's! He made an attempt to move it but Cas snaked his other hand to rest it on top of his own, stroking comfortably. That little contact of skin felt like fire burning it's way up his arms, sending tingles that reached all the way to his spine. For a minute, Dean couldn't breath and when he looked up, his gaze locked on blue eyes that were soft yet intense, electrifying.

The moment, or whatever it was that they were having, was broken by the arrival of their food and Dean was relieved. Having that sort of soul-searching stare with Cas was very overwhelming, even if it was oddly fascinating at the same time. The rest of the dinner passed by as usual. They talked and told stories just like before, when they had their weekly lunched but this time, there was something in the atmosphere. Every there was a lull in the conversation, Dean would find himself drawn to staring back at Cas's blue eyes, or narrowing down on his chapped lips, the way he licked at them before taking a sip of his drink. It was just so distracting and more than once, Dean found himself trailing off, forgetting what he was talking about.

"Here you go cutie," Chasity, the waitress came back with a huge helping of blueberry pie.

"We didn't order any dessert," Cas looked at Dean, confused.

The waitress giggled. "It's on the house, specially for you."

Dean clenched his jaw and gritted his teeth together. The she-devil just didn't seem to give up. He shot a glare towards her but she ignored him, all the while looking at Cas.

"This is really good," Cas exclaimed with his mouth full, oblivious to the glares that the both of them were exchanging.

Dean glanced a look at Cas and couldn't help but grin. His mouth was stuffed and cheeks blown up and he really hated the fact that Cas seemed to like the pie. He should have thought of ordering it for him, Dammit!

"Whoa, slow down, you're turning red," Dean joked.

Cas frowned and stopped chewing for a moment. All of a sudden, he grimaced it pain. That was when Dean realized that Cas was really turning an unhealthy shade of red. And was that spots that were appearing on his neck?

"Hey, you okay?" Dean all but yelled as Cas started sputtering and coughing. To Dean's horror, he wordlessly slumped out of his chair and fell onto the ground.

"Oh my god!" Chasity shrieked.

Dean ignored her and rushed towards Cas, leaning over his body. By now, his face puffy was covered with a sheen of of sweat and Dean could hear the the stuterring of his raggedy breaths.

"Were there nuts in the pie?" Dean demanded, screaming at the waitress.

Eyes wide in terror, she nodded.

"Dammit! Call the ambulance now! He's allergic to them." Dean cried, panic leaking out of his voice.

"Oh God, Dean! I had no idea!"

"Is he going to be okay?"

Wait, what the hell was Sarah and Jo doing here?

But now as no time for questions because Cas was unconscious and his own heart was thumping loudly in his chest as Dean felt Cas's breathing slowing down.

"Hang in there, Cas! You're gonna be alright!" whispered Dean as he gently shook the other guy.


	6. Sam Is Confused

Apart from the fact that Cas had ended up in the hospital, that Dean had gotten ridiculously jealous over a waitress and that their first few conversations had been going so badly that Jo and Sarah had found it necessary to take things into their own hands, his first date with Cas wasn't all that bad. They still had some special moments in the restaurant when it just seemed to be the two of them and they were content with staring at each other, memorizing every little detail and committing it to memory.

But when Cas, after he had gotten his shot and the swelling had stopped, had smiled at Dean, reassuring him that he was okay and asked "How about a do-over?" Dean's worried-stricken face morphed into a grin.

"Yeah, that would be awesome," he chuckled, nodding his head.

"And maybe the next time you won't invite Jo and Sarah," said Cas drily.

"Hey, Dean didn't tell us you were allergic to nuts!" Jo cried out defensively.

"Yeah, and we were only trying to help. God knows how much you guys needed us," grumbled Sarah.

"Hang on," said Dean, his eyes widening in horror. "Was the waitress part of your plan?"

Jo grinned at the two of them as Sarah nodded her head.

"Pretty smart of us huh? And boy did it work! You were so jealous and it was so adorable!" she squealed.

"Okay, I think you guys ought to go now, Cas needs some rest," Dean flustered..

They kissed on their second date.

It was really just a simple dinner and a movie and at the end of the night, Dean had dropped Cas off at the apartment. It was raining heavily outside, drops of water splashing harshly on the windows of the impala.

"Goodnight, Cas," Dean whispered as he leaned forward.

The kiss was gentle and chaste; just a brush of lips with a hint of teeth. Cas kissed the way he approached anything new; hesitant and shyly. They pulled apart for a second and then Cas was leaning in again, this time deepening the kiss. Dean held on to Cas' shirt with one hand and kept the other on his neck, tugging him closer. He played with the black hair at his nape, still slightly damp from the rain.

"Goodnight, Dean," Cas whispered back and with a small smile, he climbed out of the car.

Dean waited until he saw Cas disappear through the doors and quietly parked his car a few blocks away. Now that Cas could recognize his Impala even from afar, it was best to keep it away from the apartment.

On their fifth date, two weeks later, Cas invited Dean over to stay the night.

After the whole 'first date' fiasco Jo, Sarah and Sam felt guilty and had promised to back off from Dean's love life. Of course that didn't last long and after a while, whenever Cas came back to the café, or called him, the three of them would waggle their eyebrows at him and Dean would have to remind them of their promise. However, that didn't stop them from loudly speculating about the two of them in the café. So when Dean stumbled home the next morning with marks peeking from the collar of his shirt and the top buttons all ripped out, Sam simply grinned at him and said, "It's about damn time!" before scurrying of to call Jo.

Sam was still on the phone when Dean finished breakfast. "Jo says she hope you guys used protection!"

"Yeah, well tell her to mind her own business," Dean retorted. " I'm going off to shower."

Sam jumped up from the couch.

"Me first!" he protested.

"And why the hell should I let you get the first shower?"

Much to Dean's amusement, it was Sam's turn to blush a deep red.

"Well, um. It 'cause I er, got um a date."

Dean narrowed his eyes in suspicion. "With who?" he demanded.

"You don't know him, he's from out of town."

Dean gasped. "Don't tell me its the same guy you met at the library and who's been constantly annoying you for the past two weeks!"

Sam nodded and threw a pleading look at Dean, one which begged to just leave him alone and not tease him. Dean, being the awesome brother that he was, let it slide and simply nodded in return. "Have fun on your date."

Sam sighed in relief. "Thanks."

"Oh and Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"Remember to use protection!"

He should have seen the phone flying in his direction.

Castiel wasn't a morning person at all. In fact, he hated mornings, hated waking up so early. But he could get used to waking up with Dean in his bed; both of them snuggling under the warmth of the covers.

"Morning, Cas," Dean greeted him with a kiss to his forehead.

"Morphmm," Castiel tiredly grumbled back. "What time issit?"

"Eight.

"It's too early!" he groaned, burrowing his head deeper into the covers.

Dean chuckled, "I have to get back to work."

"This early?"

Dean simply replied by kissing him lazily.

"Have fun at work."

The second time Castiel woke up that morning wasn't so pleasant. His eyes flew open as his walls practically shook with the loud noises coming from next door. Castiel cursed out aloud. Jumping out of bed and wrapping an old bathrobe around him, Castiel stormed out of his apartment.

He had really thought that maybe his neighbor had finally decided to cut him some slack but with the volume practically on full blast, he didn't think so. It was a shame too, because he had really enjoyed the last few pies that were left on his doorsteps.

"Hey assbutt!" Castiel cried angrily as he pounded his fists onto the door of 1306. "Answer the door you stupid coward."

Even though he sounded extremely pissed with just a touch of intimidating, Castiel didn't expect his neighbour to actually open the door. So when he suddenly found himself face to face, or rather face to chest with an extremely tall man with long floppy hair, Castiel was speechless.

On the other hand, Gigantor seemed thrilled to see him.

"Oh its you! I'm sorry but D-"

"You know, I actually thought that you had somehow matured in these few weeks and was only trying to apologize for your atrocious behavior, what with all the cakes and pies, but clearly I was wrong." Castiel shouted. " With a body that freakishly huge, I would have that that you'd have the brains to go with it but obviously the phrase 'being a considerate neighbor' doesn't seem to be in your vocabulary."

"Wait a minute," the other man cried, looking confused. " You live next door?"

Castiel couldn't believe it. Now that he had finally managed to confront his annoying neighbor, the man was playing dumb!

"Yes, I'm the one who constantly has to tolerate your stupid music in the middle of the night. And you would've known this if you had actually answered the door the last few times instead of hiding in that dingy little hole like the coward you are!"

"Hang on-"

Castiel angrily spun around and stomped back to his apartment, slamming the door behind him

Sam blinked his eyes a few times in confusion, brain working desperately just so he could wrap his head around the whole thing. What the hell just happened?

"Dean has so much explaining to do," he muttered to himself as he reached for the phone.


	7. Things Just Got Worse

"What the hell is wrong with you?" Sam practically roared over the phone.

"Dude, could you be a little more specific?"

"I'm talking about your neighbor, Dean! You couldn't have have mentioned that it was Cas next door?"

Dean muttered a curse across the line. "What happened?"

Sam went on to explain the whole fiasco that had happened earlier that afternoon rather angrily.

"And you're sure he doesn't know you're my brother?" Dean asked.

"You're missing the point! It's Cas living next door! Cas! Who thinks his neighbor is a cowardly douche-bag 'who likes to hide in his dingy hole'!"

"That's exactly my point. He hates his neighbor, Sammy! Can you imagine what would happen when he finds out that his neighbor is actually me?"

"Dean, there is something seriously wrong with you. If you let this lie go on any longer, trust me, it'll come back to bite you in the ass." Sam pleaded.

"Yeah, whatever Oprah. I gotta go now."

And with that the line went dead. Sam sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. He had come back on his vacation to relax, but it seemed that Dean and Cas were driving him on the brink of insanity.

"...And he actually had the cheek to ask if I lived next door! Like he didn't know!"

"Relax Cas, you've been ranting on for the past hour. Just take a break and breathe." Dean whispered in his ear as he slowly massaged Cas's tense shoulders.

Cas deflated a bit at that and simply sighed happily as Dean continued to knead his muscles.

"I think I should take a hot shower." Said Cas.

"Okay."

"Come with?"

Dean grinned at him. "Okay."

Castiel was so tired. He had been spending the past two hours at the local library and he was still flipping through the age old books. Stupid Gabriel had sent him on a stupid errand to look up some stupid disease to help him with his stupid case.

"Why can't you just ask a doctor, or better yet do it yourself!" Castiel had yelled.

"Its called cross-referring Cassy and what are little brothers for if they don't do your work for you?" Smirked Gabriel.

And before Castiel could argue back, Gabriel had threatened to upload the video of him after his first drink on the Internet which promptly shut him up. He highly doubted that his brother still had it after all these years but you never knew with Gabriel. It was better to just do as he said and when he wasn't looking, Castiel would just sneak into his hotel room and get rid of the offending video.

But for now, Castiel was stuck in the library rifling through medical dictionaries without any idea as to what he was reading.

He had always wanted to be a doctor when he was young. Even studied really hard for it in high-school but when his mother had suddenly been diagnosed with breast cancer, his only real concern was bring there with her in her final moments. College was out of the question. When he had told Dean about this, the other man had insisted that he go back to college and follow through with his dream. Castiel had laughed it off. He was already happy here with Dean. Dean had snorted at that and told him to stop with the 'chick-flick moments'.

Castiel was really missing Dean. It had been a while since they had spent some time together. He quickly took out his cellphone.

Dean, let's have dinner tonight?

Can't. Sam's been whining that I haven't spent any time with him. Tomorrow?

Okay. Have fun with your brother. God knows I'm not.

Thanks, love you, Cas.

Love you too.

Castiel sighed unhappily. It seem that he would have to spend the whole evening looking for some disease that, knowing his brother, was probably non-existent.

Twenty minutes had passed by and Castiel's mind was already drifting off. The library had those kind of full length one-way glass windows which he was staring out of right now. It was was slightly dark outside, and there were many people driving by and walking past. He looked at them lazily.

Suddenly, his eyes zeroed in on the Impala that was now being parked down the road. He saw Dean climb out of it and walk towards the entrance. Castiel's eyebrows furrowed in confusion and then suddenly he broke out into a grin.

Dean had never gone to the library but now here he was, and Castiel was sure he was looking for him. He had probably found out that he was in the library and had decided that he did want to have dinner after all. Castiel smiled to himself.

When Dean entered the library, with his eyes scanning the place, Castiel lifted his hand to wave to Dean. But before Dean could look at him, his green eyes had spotted something in the opposite direction and his face almost brightened up immediately. To his confusion, he watched as Dean walked up to the tables in the corner and clapped a hand over the shoulders of another man. A rather large man which Castiel began to realize was actually Gigantor, his imbecile of a neighbor.

Castiel watched as Gigantor stood up gathering his books and gave his Dean a stupid toothy smile. His stomach felt as though it had dropped down to the ground when Dean smiled back and ran his fingers through the other man's stupidly long hair playfully.

What was going on here? It couldn't just be a mistake. Castiel had seen the man many times in the cafe and whenever they met, he would give the man the stink-eye and refused to talk to him. He even complained to Dean who would sympathetically agree with him that the guy did look like big foot. So why were the two being so friendly to each other now?

Castiel inched closer towards them but he was still to far and the two men were whispering so the only word that he could catch was 'dinner'.

Castiel's heart thudded painfully fast in chest as he tried to regulate his rapid breathing. He watched in growing horror as the two walked out of the library, with Dean's stupid arm still wrapped around Gigantor's shoulders.

It had to be a mistake. It had to be. There was probably some sort of misunderstanding. With shaking hands, Castiel dialed Dean's number and put the phone at his ear. Through the glass window, he could see Dean pull his own phone out of his pocket.  
His heart squeezed painfully as Dean put it away without a second glance and the line went dead.

Castiel battled with the tears threatening to spill down his cheeks. It had to be a mistake, it jut had to be.

-

"Dude wasn't that Cas calling? Why'd you ignore it?"

Dean rolled his eyes at him. "Like I said, it's only going to be you and me tonight, Sammy! Just some brother-bonding time."


	8. Umm, What The Hell?

_Two days. 48 hours. 2880 minutes_.

It was all Dean could think about.

It had had been a whole two days since Cas had called, and the one time that the guy did pick up his phone, he was curt, almost as if he was angry.

"What is it, Dean?"

"Umm," Dean gulped hard. Cas sounded so harsh over the phone that it completely threw him off. "You okay? I haven't heard from you since.. Two days ago..."

"I'm alright. Just busy." Cas snapped.

"You sure? How about we go out for lunch during your break tomorrow?" Dean stammered.

"Can't. I have a lot of work pending for me. Here is an idea, why don't you have lunch with your brother instead?" Cas said coolly before hanging up.

Dean stared at his phone in confusion and a slight hint of anger. What the hell?

* * *

_Two days. 48 hours. 2880 minutes_

On the first day, Castiel could barely bring himself to get out of bed, much less leave his apartment. But he had run out of food and while starving to death didn't seem like such a bad idea, Castiel knew that he would have to get up sooner or later.

Later would have been a much better idea because that morning, as Castiel walked out of the supermarket, his eyes immediately fell onto a black car, an impala, parked just outside. And the hole in his heart tore wider as he saw Gigantor climbing into the car, keys in hand, starting the ignition.

Castiel barely remembered the walk home, vision blurred with tears and shopping bags left forgotten in the parking lott.

But now, Castiel was fuming. It had been two days since his jealousy and betrayal had bled into cold anger. Dean had tried calling him but he just couldn't bring himself to listen to that liar again. Even that one conversation had done nothing to make things better.

Castiel should have realized what a lying cheating moron of a man Dean Winchester was, the good looking ones always were. He already knew what an asshole Gigantor was, but Dean? How could Dean have done this to him? With barely controlled anger, Castiel stroke a word off his paper so viciously that it tore into two.

He wasn't lying when he said that he was busy. The stupid research errand that his brother had forced onto him was taking over all if his free time. When Gabriel wanted to, he could be such a pain in the ass sometimes.

Well, it had been said that speak of the devil and the devil shall arrive.

Just when Castiel muttered a 'stupid Gabriel' under his breath while flipping a page, his phone rang. Sure enough, it was Gabriel.

"What, Gabriel?"

"Still moping around?"

Castiel could almost picture his brother smirking over the phone.

" Leave me alone, Gabriel. I have research to finish for you," Castiel snapped. "Aren't you supposed to be on vacation from work? Why do you need so much research?"

For the first time in his life, Castiel heard Gabriel hesitate before replying, "I'm trying to impress a friend."

This time, it was Castiel's turn to smirk.

"The same _friend_ you've been dating for the past couple of days?"

Gabriel huffed, "Look you moron, I only called just to check on how much you've covered but it seems to me that you're too busy nursing your broken heart, which I think completely stupid 'cause it's not like you're absolutely sure that your guy's cheating on you!"

Castiel opened his mouth to protest but before he could get a word out, the line went dead. He stared at his phone for a whole minute, thinking about what his brother had said. Although he was reluctant to admit it, Gabriel did make a point. Maybe he should have actually tried to get things cleared up before he jumped to conclusions. Castiel sat at his desk for a little while longer before making up his mind. At the risk of convincing himself otherwise, he quickly rushed out of his apartment and with a flutter of nerves, he scurried off next door. Castiel ignored the uncertainty clouding up his mind in favor of knocking on the door with his rather shaky hands.

Castiel had a sudden urge to bolt off but before he could make his get away, the door flung open, answered by Gigantor. The man took one glance at Castiel and immediately froze, eyes widening in horror.

"Umm..." the man swallowed nervously.

Castiel's throat clogged up and he couldn't find his voice. What was he supposed to say know?

"Is that the pizza guy?"

The awkward silence was broken by the loud shout, and Castiel was certain he could hear his own heart shattering into a million pieces. He _recognized_ that voice, _knew_ who it belonged to and sure enough, Dean appeared from where Castiel guessed the bedroom was, fresh from the shower with a towel slung loosely on his hips.

Dean's eyes fell on Castiel and his mouth dropped open in terror.

"Look, Cas, let me expla-"

"I don't want to listen to anymore of your lies." Castiel shouted angrily.

"Just let me explain!" Dean begged. "I'm sorry for not telling you that I'm your-"

But Castiel was hearing none of it anymore.

"Just shut up!" he yelled as he turned to face the other man, who still had a shell-shocked expression glued to his face. "Sorry for ruining your _date_!"

Castiel could hear Dean sputtering for excuses and explanations but he wasn't going to wait around for him to come up with another lie.

"Wait, what the hell are you talking about?" Dean shouted behind him but Castiel was already gone.

He didn't know where to go and somewhere, at the back of his head, his brain reminded him that he had left his door unlocked but Castiel couldn't bring himself to care. Gigantor had already taken Dean away from his, what else was he going to steal?

Castiel hadn't realized where he was going until he found himself standing in front of the hotel that Gabriel was currently living in. Despite the fact that Gabriel was always intent on making Castiel's life as hard as possible, he couldn't think of anyone else he'd rather go to.

* * *

" I didn't call for room serv- Cassy?" Gabriel's look of confusion would have made Castiel crack a small smile under less depressing circumstances.

"Hello, brother."

" _Jesus Christ,_ what happened to you? You look like someone just ran over your puppy then ate it right in front of you!" Gabriel exclaimed as he pulled Castiel into the warmth of his room.

Tearfully, Castiel related the whole incident to his brother. By the time he was done, Gabriel's lips had thinned and his eyes darkened in barely contained fury.

"That asshole is so dead!" he roared and Castiel winced slightly. "When I get my hands on him, I'm going to castrate him, dip him in boiling hot oil and pour acid all over his shriveled up body. _Then_ I'm going to kill him!"

"Stop, Gabriel," Castiel sniffed. "He's not worth it."

Gabriel shook his fists in anger. "Revenge! You should get revenge! Sleep with all his neighbours and friends!"

"Gabriel…"

"What, don't you want to hurt him like he did to you?" Gabriel cried out excitedly.

Castiel sighed tiredly. " No..just.. Can I stay here? For the night? I don't want to go back to my apartment.

Gabriel's wild eyes immediately softened.

"Sure thing, Cassy."

* * *

Early the next morning, Castiel woke up to Gabriel fussing around and blow-drying his hair.

"Sorry for waking you up," he appologised and then sheepishly said, " I actually meeting my friend for breakfast. We'll just be in the buffet room on the third floor… But if you want, I can cancel… I wont mind if you want some company.."

"No, it is fine. Just because my love life is in turmoil doesn't mean you can't have a chance at true love." Castiel moaned.

"God, Cassy. Sometimes you can be such a drama queen!"

* * *

Castiel was flipping around the dozen channels on the hotel TV when his phone rang. He almost ignored it, thinking it was Dean who had been calling since last night but the ringtone was of his brother's.

"Sorry, Cassy," his brother giggled. "I left my car keys up there. Come down to the lobby and pass it me."

Castiel rolled his eyes in irritation. Gabriel was such a snob sometimes. He looked at himself in the mirror, taking note of his red rimmed eyes and his wrinkled clothes that he had slept in. He was going to be such a sight when he went down looking like that. Grabbing the keys, Castiel made his way out the room.

Sure enough, there were many people in the elevator and all of them were staring as he walked in. Feeling a little self-conscious, Castiel willed the elevator to move faster. He sighed in relief as it slowed down to a stop with a ding and he walked out into the lobby.

But Castiel wasn't prepared for the sight that greeted him and he stopped dead in his tracks. There, in the middle of the room, Gabriel had his arms wrapped around another man, and it wasn't just _any_ random guy, it was _freaking Gigantor_.

Castiel blinked rapidly in confusion as only one thought ran through his head.

_What the hell?_

* * *


	9. Castiel Feels Really Stupid

Castiel had never really been very angry in his life before. Sure he was always annoyed with his brothers and there was that one time with Gabriel and a certain pink flamingo ending up in his room which resulted in a silent treatment for over two weeks but it never really gave Castiel any desire for murder.

But Castiel was furious now, fuming mad with his blood boiling under his skin. It was bad enough that his boyfriend had cheated on him, now the man that Dean had cheated on was now cheating on him with his brother. It was such a goddamn disgusting mess of scummy cheating lying boyfriends that Castiel could hardly wrap his head around it. His heart was pumping blood filled with desire to just wrap his hands around Gigantor's throat and just squeeze until the other man was wheezing for air. He and Dean Winchester had made a fool out Castiel but he wasn't going to let his brother go through the same heart break as him.

Castiel didn't know what to say or do. His mind was in overdrive and it wasn't long before anger caught up, washing over his confusion. He didn't care that he was in public and that people were already staring at him in the state that he was, all that Castiel thought about was destroying that man who seemed to have wormed his way into his life and turning it into hell in every single way he could. It started off with being an insufferable neighbor and then stealing his Dean. Now he was cheating on his brother too? Castles fists shook with barely contained fury.

Ignoring the weird looks thrown his way, Castiel stomped towards his brother and his companion, eyes blazing and lips set in a snarl. The two of them were facing his back and they didn't see him until Castiel grabbed his brothers arm and pulled him away from the man's embrace.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" he practically roared.

"Cassy, are you drunk? What's wrong with you?" Gabriel half cried and half whined, but Castiel ignored him.

Gigantor had blinked rapidly a few times but when his eyes settled on Castiel, they widened rather comically and his lips formed an 'O' in surprise.

"Look-" Gigantor started but Castiel didn't let him finish, he refused to.

He wasn't as tall as the other man, but Castiel still glared at him murderously and stood with his chin lifted high.

"Do you really think I would let you go after what you did to me? And now you are also cheating on my brother? Do you have no limits? What kind of a sick whore are you?" he hissed angrily.

Gabriel, who had been standing behind Castiel the whole time, trying to push him away suddenly stopped in his attempts and simply stared at Gigantor. "What's he talking about?" he asked, arms folded across his chest.

Gigantor held up his hands and protested, " Listen to me-"

"Are you cheating on me?" Gabriel demanded angrily and without waiting for a reply, turned to Castiel and asked, "How do you know him?"

Castiel wasted no time in pointing a finger at the larger man and saying, "That mountain over there is my repulsive neighbor."

"Your boyfriend's boyfriend?"

"Yes, I believe you can put that way..."

"Look, Cas. I am not you neighbor. Seriously, he is! He lives right next to you!"

Castiel narrowed his eyes and snapped back. "Well congratulations on moving in together. Should I have given you a housewarming gift?"

"We didn't-"

"You moved in with someone else?" Gabriel screeched in horror, stepping a few steps back.

"No, I didn't, he's my brother-"

" _You're sleeping with your brother_?" Gabriel's loud horrified voice resonated across the lobby, drawing dirty looks from the people around him.

Castiel's eyes furrowed in confusion as he tried to keep up with the sudden onslaught of new information that was coming his way. H couldn't seem to make any sense of it an it didn't help that Gabriel kept interrupting every few seconds with just repeating whatever they already knew in shouts and screams. They were already drawing much attention and his ears were starting to ring a little.

"No I'm not. He lives there on his own!" The other man protested.

"Who does?" Castiel asked.

"His brother," Gabriel supplied helpfully.

"So you're not with Dean?"

"Who's Dean?" Gabriel threw his arms up in the air in confusion.

"My boyfriend."

"Then who's your neighbor?"

"It's Dean." Gigantor snapped back.

"Well then, who's your brother?" Gabriel shouted towards the taller man.

"Dean."

_"Okay seriously what the hell is going on?"_

Castiel had no idea, but the pieces were slowly fitting together...

Gigantor took a deep breath and looked at the two brothers straight in the eye.

"Listen, you guys. My name is Sam, and my brother's Dean. I don't technically live next door to Cas, I'm just staying over at my brother's for the holidays. It's my brother who's your neighbor, Cas.

"Oh, wow," Gabriel mused. "Bet you're feeling really stupid now, huh, Cassy?"

Sam sighed and gave Castiel's brother a look. "Gabriel you're not helping..."

"Oh come on Sam-" Gabriel started.

"But why didn't Dean tell me that?" Castiel asked, interrupting the two do them.

"Because he's an idiot?" Sam shrugged. "And it's not like you guys were getting along as neighbors. I guess he was just... afraid that you might, I don't know, hate him if you found out."

Castiel shook his head, "But that's silly, I wouldn't let that come between us."

Sam grinned good-naturally and said, "I know that, and Dean probably does too, its just that he's not used to the whole relationship thing, but he's trying his best."

Castiel looked down and but his lips.

"Thank you, Sam," he said. "And it really is nice to meet you, despite what I have said earlier. I apologize for that. I was too rash, and didn't stop to think things through at all. I really do love your brother."

Gabriel, who had been surprisingly silent the whole time, suddenly burst out, "Okay, not to interrupt this moment or whatever, but shouldn't you be saying all that to your man instead of mine. If this Dean really is as stupid as he sounds, you better go and spell it out for him, word for world. So scurry off and leave us on our date!"

Castiel nodded. His brother was right. He had to look for Dean. After all, they had a few things to talk about, and alot he had to apologize for. He almost reddened in embarrassment as he thought about how stupidly he had reacted to everything. Really, how could he have been so foolish and jumped to conclusions? He should have simply asked Dean instead of just running off...

So Castiel made his way back to his apartment. After all, he had to meet his neighbor…


	10. Things Might Be Looking Up

Dean woke up that morning to a painful throbbing in his head and his mouth feeling as though he had swallowed a bucket of sand. He groaned in pain and tried shaking his head to clear the fuzzyness in his brain but all he could see in his mind was the way Cas' blue eyes had widened in shock, quickly swimming in emotions of hurt and betrayal and how they had narrowed and simply turned into a murderous glare. He remembered how he couldn't stop Cas from running away in time, how his fingers had barely grazed those thin wrists and how hoarse his voice had become, shouting Cas' name over and over again down the corridor. When Dean had returned back into his apartment, he must have looked horrible because for once Sam took one look at him and had the tact not to say _'I told you so'_. Instead he nodded sympathetically at him and comforted him. "I'm sure he'll come around once he's calmed down."

Dean simply ignored him and broke out his bottles of beer from the fridge. He then spent most of the day, calling and calling but Cas just wouldn't pick up. Sam would shoot him looks of pity from time to time which he had found assuring in the beginning, but that had later turned into annoyance.

"Would you quite looking at me like that?" he had finally snapped, glaring at his brother.

Sam shook his head with an expression of deep understanding, which was again _, really_ getting on his nerves, and patted him on back.

"You guys are made for each other so just give him some time alright?"

Dean grunted and swung his fifth, _or was it sixth bottle_ , he really couldn't remember. "I'm not any of your lady friends so you can stop giving me the Oprah treatment and leave me alone."

Sam sighed and retired to his room for the night.

Sometime later, Cas had decided to turn off his phone and all Dean had gotten was the dial tone. After a few rounds of beeping, Dean had even begun missing the answering machine that he had become so fond of, _( I don't understand, why do you want me to say my name?_ ) which really summed up how pathetic he was. But he couldn't stop himself from falling asleep with his fingers still hovering over his phone.

Dean was disappointed when he checked his phone the next morning only to see that Cas hadn't called him nor texted him back. There were only just a few from Sam informing him that he had gone out and a bunch from Jo and Sarah.  
 _  
'WHERE THE HELL ARE YOU? YOUR SHIFT STARTED AN HOUR AGO!'_

_-Jo_

_'Are you okay Dean? Jo's really pissed and we really need some help here.'_

_-Sarah_

_"OH MY GOD DEAN! SAM JUST TOLD ME WHAT HAPPENED? ARE YOU OKAY?'_

_-Jo_

_'DO YOU WANT ME TO COME OVER? SARAH CAN HOLD THE FORD DOWN FOR NOW. JUST SAY THE WORD AND I'LL BE THERE!'  
-Jo_

_'DEAN! WHAT THE HELL? THE LEAST YOU COULD DO IS REPLY! DO YOU NEED ME TO KIDNAP CASTIEL AND BRING HIM HERE?'_

_-Jo_

So many of these texts, but none of them were from the person he wanted to hear from the most. He had expected that, after all, he _had_ lied to Cas but it still hurt, like a weight was settling over his heart, slowly crushing it into pieces.

Dean was nursing his hangover when the doorbell rang. It seemed that Jo had taken his silence as an invitation and she had decided to come over and slap some sense into him. When Dean answered the door however, grumbling obscenities, he took a step back in surprise as his eyes fell on the person in front of him.

It wasn't Jo.

No, the blue eyes that he was staring into belonged to Cas.

Dean was aware that he had spent the last twelve hours constantly calling him but when he finally was face to face with Cas, god help him, he was a stuttering speechless mess.

* * *

Castiel's heart was beating so loudly he could practically hear the blood rushing through his veins. He had walked the last few blocks with his thoughts all over the place, brain trying to keep them in order. He had hoped that when he finally faced Dean, the words would come to him. Well, Castiel was never one for talking and his words were failing him now. His lips were moving without any sound actually coming out and Dean, after getting over his initial shock, seemed to be doing the same.

"I thought you were dating Sam!" he blurted out. Ah, yes. Castiel was definitely had mad talking skills.

Dean's eyebrows shot up in confusion and surprise, much like how Sam had done earlier that morning. However, Dean's eyes, unlike his brother's were red and bloodshot and he looked as though he didn't get a good night's sleep at all. Guilt seeped though his bones, if only he had actually stayed around to listen to Dean's explanation, this whole entire mess could have been avoided.

"What?" Dean asked, shocked.

Embarrassment heated up Castiel's cheeks. "I mean, I saw you with Sam the other time and I didn't know he was your brother. He was supposed to be my neighbor and you've never actually told me all those times we were at the coffee shop. And then I saw you at his place which now I know is actually yours but yesterday, it looked as though, I mean after I had seen the two of you hug, and you were practically naked except for a towel and I just thought..." Castiel stammered.

He didn't think it was possible but Dean's eyebrows flew up even higher and his eyes grew wide. When Castiel was done talking, his gaping mouth motives into a grin and his hazel green eyes sparkled. "Cas, you idiot."

Cas opened his mouth indignantly, ready to point out the fact that Dean wasn't any smarter; lying and hiding the fact that they were neighbors. But just as he was about to come up with a rather smart reply, Castiel suddenly found his face gently framed by rough calloused hands and his lips covered with heat and wetness. He gasped in surprised and it made the kiss all the more deeper and Castiel's tense shoulders immediately became relaxed and pliant.

"I'm the one who's been living right next door to you. And I know, it was a stupid move and it probably wasn't such a good decision to hide that from you but how was I supposed to tell you the truth? _Hey Cas, wanna have dinner tonight? Oh and by the way, the neighbor you keep complaining about, the one you want to murder? Yeah,I just thought to let you know that that's me_."

Dean placed a soft kiss on Castiel's lips, rubbing circles on his cheeks with his thumbs. "i was just a little scared of loosing you, and I'm really sorry. You don't ever have to think that I'd cheat on you 'cause I'll only ever belong to you."

Castiel place reassuring hands on Dean's hips, pulling him even closer. "You're such an idiot too," he said.

And then they were kissing again.

"But," Castiel said, breaking away just to look at Dean seriously in the eyes. "You do make wonderful pies."

The sound of Dean's careless laughter was probably the most beautiful thing Castiel had ever heard in his life.


	11. The End

The weeks following the whole emotional fiasco was full of teases and taunts from both family and friends. Jo and Sarah had managed to pry out the whole story from Sam and the next time that Dean came into the coffee shop with Castiel, Jo made sure to ask Dean why she never had a pie baked especially for her. The two girls also relayed the whole story of Dean and Castiel to everyone they knew and soon, their story was the talk of the town. It wasn't just Jo and Sarah who would tease them though, even Gabriel chipped into the numerous taunts by never failing to bring up the night when, in his words, 'Castiel had turned up at his room, teary-eyed and sobbing like a broken hearted teenage girl'. Castiel would just cross his arms angrily and threaten to email all his exes a video of him last summer when he was completely drunk and singing Celine Dion.

It wasn't long before Gabriel managed to convince his brother to meet the man he had heard do much of. When he did finally meet Dean for the first time, he winked at Castiel and wrapped his arms around Sam, saying "Clearly, I got the better-looking Winchester, and smarter too."

Dean was grumpy the whole day and glared at Gabriel whenever he had the chance. But as the two of them spent more time together, it was obvious that they didn't hate each other as much as they pretended to. Gabriel even went on to pat Dean on the shoulder and said, "You're not too bad after all." But that was only after he threatened to have Dean's balls in a grinder if he ever did hurt his brother again. He even went on to purchase a meat grinder and display it grandly on the top shelf of Castiel's kitchen cabinets.

Later on that night, Dean confessed to Castiel, "He kinda scares me."

No matter how much the other man pouted or sulked, Castiel couldn't stop himself from bursting into laughter.

Castiel still blushed from time to time when he talked to the younger Winchester, despite the many attempts that Sam had undergone, trying to assure him that all was forgiven. The two of them enjoyed each other's company a lot and they had many similar interests. Dean had named their time spent together as geeking out while Sam called it having an intellectually stimulating conversation. Castiel just rolled his eyes at the playful banter that picked up after that.

Most of the time, the four of them spent their time at Dean's coffe shop where Dean _was supposed to be working his shifts instead of making out with his boyfriend_ as Jo constantly pointed out. Dean casually commented that she was just bitter about being single and alone. He went home that day with a large bruise forming on his cheek, which Castiel kissed to stop him from complaining.

Soon, spring break had ended and it was time for Sam to return to college. Although both men didn't actually voice it out, but Sam and Dean knew that they were going to miss spending time with each other. Gabriel left town soon after and surprised Sam by being transferred to the branch that was located near Stamford. Castiel was a little surprised at how serious things had gotten between the two of them because Gabriel was usually the kind who preferred short-term flings over an actual relationship. Dean told Castiel that Sam was just that kind of person who could bring that sideout from anyone.

Things were peaceful and slow for a while. With Sam gone and Sarah stuck sick at home, Jo stopped with the teasing and even spent some nights having dinner with the Dean and Castiel without bickering with the former.

With much persuasion, Dean managed to convince Castiel to take up night classes so that he could finally be what he always dreamt of, a doctor. Although he was older than most of his peers, Castiel was extremely bright and constantly topped his class. But with the late night classes and Dean's morning shift, the two of them could only squeeze in a few minutes together.

It was a month later when they were lying in bed together that Dean finally asked Cas what he was fretting about throughout the whole week.

"Cas?"

"Hmm?" Castiel sleepily mumbled.

"You know, since we practically live next door to each other and we're always spending time in only one of our apartments... It'd would save us a lot on rent if you moved in with me," Dean ended lamely.

Castiel frowned, "You want me to move in so you could save some money?"

"What?" Dean sputtered. "No, that's not what I meant at all! I just, argh. Do I really have to spell it out for you? I love you okay, and I wanna spend every waking hour possible with you."

Castiel gently stroked Dean's shoulders and grinned, "Alright, I'll move in with you."

It didn't take that long for the both of them to move Castiel's belongings over and even less time for Castiel to get a buyer for his apartment. He didn't actually get to meet the man, but they were rather unceremoniously alerted as soon as the guy moved in.

Dean was sleeping comfortably in the warmth of his bed when he was suddenly jolted awake with the blaring sounds of a television across the paper thin walls. He buried his head under the pillows and groaned.

"That asshole of a neighbor," he muttered, angrily.

Dean felt an arm tighten around his waist and the tickle of a breath at his ear. Castiel chuckled, "Want me to go over and have a word with him?"

Dean grinned as he shook his head vigorously. "Nah. Who knows, you might actually fall in love with him."

"In love with a man named Lucifer who looks as though he probably works as a hitman? Never," Castiel said, curling around the other man. "Besides, my heart belongs to someone else."

It was getting late, almost close to noon and they had a lunch date with both Gabriel and Sam who were in town for the weekend but Castiel didn't want to get out of bed just yet. It was warm under the comforters and with Dean snoring softly beside him, Castiel was slowly lulled back to sleep. Their brothers could wait, because Castiel could probably spend the rest of his entire life there, with Dean, always.


End file.
